Clalit
Encyclopedia
Clalit, also Klalit is one of Israel
's leading health service organizations. Widely known as Kupat Holim Clalit, it was established in 1911 as a mutual aid society. When the State of Israel was founded in 1948, Clalit was instrumental in providing medical care for the massive influx of new immigrants.
Historically, Clalit was affiliated with the Histadrut
labor movement. To be a member of Clalit, one had to join the Histadrut. The name "Clalit" means "general" in Hebrew and derives from the Histadrut's full name – HaHistadrut HaKlalit shel HaOvdim B'Eretz Yisrael (lit. "The General Federation of Laborers in the Land of Israel"). In January 1995, Israel's national health insurance law went into effect, creating a compulsory health care system based on four service providers: Clalit, Leumit
, Maccabi, and Meuhedet
. Clalit is the largest of the four with around 3.8 million insured members, 54% of the Israeli population. Since the new law went into effect, membership has been open to all citizens and its tie to the Histadrut has been severed.
's Ichilov Hospital, criticized the Israeli Health Ministry for allowing Clalit to run private hospitals. Ruth Ralbag, a senior Health Ministry official, argued that opening private hospitals would lead to a decline in the public health system and divide health consumers into rich and poor.
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
's leading health service organizations. Widely known as Kupat Holim Clalit, it was established in 1911 as a mutual aid society. When the State of Israel was founded in 1948, Clalit was instrumental in providing medical care for the massive influx of new immigrants.
History
The foundations for Kupat Holim Clalit were laid by the Judea Workers' Health Fund, established at a convention of the Federation of Workers in Judea in December 1911.Historically, Clalit was affiliated with the Histadrut
Histadrut
HaHistadrut HaKlalit shel HaOvdim B'Eretz Yisrael , known as the Histadrut, is Israel's organization of trade unions. Established in December 1920 during the British Mandate for Palestine, it became one of the most powerful institutions of the State of Israel.-History:The Histadrut was founded in...
labor movement. To be a member of Clalit, one had to join the Histadrut. The name "Clalit" means "general" in Hebrew and derives from the Histadrut's full name – HaHistadrut HaKlalit shel HaOvdim B'Eretz Yisrael (lit. "The General Federation of Laborers in the Land of Israel"). In January 1995, Israel's national health insurance law went into effect, creating a compulsory health care system based on four service providers: Clalit, Leumit
Leumit Health Fund
Leumit Health Fund is an Israeli HMO, founded in 1933 by the Revisionist Zionist Movement.-History:Leumit Health Fund was established in 1933 in Dr. Yaakov Vinshal's kitchen in Tel Aviv - Israel by physicians who had been dismissed from their work in the General Health Fund at the time of the...
, Maccabi, and Meuhedet
Kupat Holim Meuhedet
Kupat Holim Meuhedet , is Israel's third largest health maintenance organization . The organization was founded in 1974 as the result of a merger of two other HMOs....
. Clalit is the largest of the four with around 3.8 million insured members, 54% of the Israeli population. Since the new law went into effect, membership has been open to all citizens and its tie to the Histadrut has been severed.
Services
Clalit runs its own network of hospitals in Israel. It operates 14 hospitals, including psychiatric hospitals and a rehabilitation hospital, all of them university-affiliated. Clalit runs over 1,300 primary care clinics as well as a network of pharmacies and dental clinics.Hospitals
- Soroka Medical CenterSoroka Medical CenterSoroka Medical Center is a hospital in Beersheba, Israel. It is the largest medical center in southern region of the country, and the fourth largest in Israel with approximately 1000 beds. It is owned by Clalit, the largest Health Maintenance Organization in Israel. Soroka services diverse ethnic...
(founded in 1960) in BeershebaBeershebaBeersheba is the largest city in the Negev desert of southern Israel. Often referred to as the "Capital of the Negev", it is the seventh-largest city in Israel with a population of 194,300....
. The largest hospital in the Clalit network, serves over half the area of the State of Israel, and a population of 1 million. Soroka is a referral center for the Barzilai and Yoseftal hospitals. - Rabin Medical CenterRabin Medical CenterThe Rabin Medical Center is a medical center in Petah Tikva, Israel. It is currently the second largest medical center in Israel after Sheba Medical Center, having lost the title of largest in 2006...
– Beilinson Campus (founded in 1938) in Petah TikvaPetah TikvaPetah Tikva known as Em HaMoshavot , is a city in the Center District of Israel, east of Tel Aviv.According to the Central Bureau of Statistics, at the end of 2009, the city's population stood at 209,600. The population density is approximately...
. Among its specialties are open-heart surgery and neurosurgery, as well as heart, liver and kidney transplants. - Rabin Medical CenterRabin Medical CenterThe Rabin Medical Center is a medical center in Petah Tikva, Israel. It is currently the second largest medical center in Israel after Sheba Medical Center, having lost the title of largest in 2006...
– Golda Campus (founded in 1942) in Petah Tikva. Among its specialties are total joint replacement, home dialysis, vascular surgery, and hematology research using electromicroscopic techniques. - Lady Davis Hospital (founded in 1967) in HaifaHaifaHaifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...
. It is part of the modern Carmel Medical Center. and provides comprehensive healthcare to the heterogeneous inhabitants of Haifa, its suburbs and points north. Among its specialties are its CardiologyCardiologyCardiology is a medical specialty dealing with disorders of the heart . The field includes diagnosis and treatment of congenital heart defects, coronary artery disease, heart failure, valvular heart disease and electrophysiology...
, Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery Departments, and its Community and Medicine EpidemiologyEpidemiologyEpidemiology is the study of health-event, health-characteristic, or health-determinant patterns in a population. It is the cornerstone method of public health research, and helps inform policy decisions and evidence-based medicine by identifying risk factors for disease and targets for preventive...
Department - HaEmek Hospital (founded in 1930)in AfulaAfulaAfula is a city in the North District of Israel, often known as the "Capital of the Valley", referring to the Jezreel Valley. The city had a population of 40,500 at the end of 2009.-History:...
. It is part of the Ha’Emek Valley Medical Center. It specializes in the treatment of fertility and reproductive problems. - Meir Hospital (founded in 1960) in Kfar Sava. It is part of the Sapir Medical Center. It specializes in its treatment of pulmonary diseases and spinal surgery.
- Kaplan Medical CenterKaplan Medical CenterThe Kaplan Medical Center is a hospital in Rehovot, Israel, located in the south of the city next to the Bilu Junction. In 2001, the hospital had 625 beds and in May 2007 was the tenth largest hospital in Israel. It serves the entire northern Shephelah region, between Rehovot and Ashdod and...
(founded in 1953) in RehovotRehovotRehovot is a city in the Center District of Israel, about south of Tel Aviv. According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics , at the end of 2009 the city had a total population of 112,700. Rehovot's official website estimates the population at 114,000.Rehovot was built on the site of Doron,...
. It is known for its expertise in hand surgeryHand surgeryThe field of hand surgery deals with both surgical and non-surgical treatment of conditions and problems that may take place in the hand or upper extremity including injury and infection. Hand surgery may be practiced by graduates of general surgery, orthopedic surgery and plastic surgery...
. - Yoseftal Medical CenterYoseftal Medical CenterYoseftal Medical Center is a hospital in Eilat, Israel.Yoseftal Hospital, founded in 1968, is the southernmost hospital in Israel and the only hospital covering the southern Negev desert. It is named after Giora Yoseftal. It is Israel's smallest general hospital with 65 beds...
(founded in 1968) in Eilat. It is part of the Yoseftal Medical Center. It is Israel’s southernmost hospital.
Criticism
In March 2007, Prof. Gabi Barabash, director of Tel AvivTel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
's Ichilov Hospital, criticized the Israeli Health Ministry for allowing Clalit to run private hospitals. Ruth Ralbag, a senior Health Ministry official, argued that opening private hospitals would lead to a decline in the public health system and divide health consumers into rich and poor.